KSC Book 3: Return of the Unversed
by OMNISENSE95
Summary: With Ashura slowly losing his sanity after acquireing a second Keystone, it seems the heroes are losing the war. However, the tables continue to turn when they receive an unexpected ally. A REALLY unexpected ally. As in the last person you'd expect.
1. The Black Lion

**Hello, and Welcome to the third installment of Keystone Chronicles! To be honest, I actually wrote this first chapter before I finished the Keytus Gene, I really wanted to get this out of the way. Anyway, I don't own Sonic the Hedgehog, Kingdom Hearts, Pokémon, or any other series that appears in this series, I only own Aaron, Clockspine, Virxels, and this incarnation of Ashura. Since this installment is set in the Realm of Darkness, I thought it would be appropriate to start off with Aqua's POV. Also, this first chapter happens DURING the last few chapters of ****The Keytus Gene.**** So, let us begin.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

**The Black Lion**

It feels like it has been an eternity since I sacrificed myself to save Terra from meeting this fate. The only pieces of my past still available to me are the Master's keyblade and the Wayfinder I made. The only thing I can remember doing in this wasteland was fend off Heartless, expecting to finally be rid of them. Maybe what Ansem the Wise said had some truth in it. Sora… you are the only hope I have at escaping.

Terra… Ven… I will see you again. I promise.

I eventually came to a narrow walkway leading to a vast clearing, in the center of which stood a large spherical stone that had this vast dark vortex swirling within it. The rock completely radiated darkness. It was right about then that a thought struck me.

Was this the source of the darkness that sustains the Heartless?

At any rate, anything that holds that much darkness inside it cannot be allowed to exist. I made my way down the walkway when a guard finally appeared before me, but there was something about that guard that had me rethinking my earlier theory. It wasn't a Heartless blocking my way to that stone, it was…

…an Unversed!

A Bruiser, to be exact. I was surprised to no end at how the Unversed could still exist. From what Yen Sid told me, the Unversed were supposed to have died along with their propagator, Vanitas.

I guess the ones that were already in existence were able to escape death by fleeing into the Realm of Darkness. Glaring at the monstrosity before me, I summoned the Master Keeper, and quickly eliminated it with a few Prism Rain volleys. With the lone Bruiser out of the way, I quickly made my way to the clearing, glaring at the dark stone in its center.

I raised the keyblade to fire a strong blot of magic at the stone, when-

"It has been a long time, Aqua."

Startled, I lowered my weapon and turned to face the direction the voice came from. I was a little uneasy at what I saw.

Leaning against a grim rock formation at the edge of the barren field was a black, anthropomorphic lion, apparently male judging from its mane. There were tufts of fur on his head that reminded me of Sora's hair, and I could barely make out this gruesome scar going across the upper half of his otherwise well-toned chest. His clothing consisted of an open red jacket with the Unversed emblem printed on the left breast, where a person's heart would be, and the back, baggy yellow jeans, and leather boots. When he looked in my direction, I could see that he had yellow eyes.

"Who are you? And how do you know my name?"

He laughed at my question. His voice sounded so familiar for some reason.

"Somehow, I knew you wouldn't recognize me. I mean, you never saw my face before I died, and with the little side effects of restoration, I bet even Master Xehanort would have a hard time recognizing me."

Wait, he wasn't always a lion? I reexamined him for more details. He looked about the same age and height as Ven, but I still couldn't place that voice. Forget who he is, why is he even here?

"It is my new duty to protect the Keystone of Darkness from those who would abuse its power." I assumed that he was talking about that dark stone I was about to destroy.

"Unfortunately for you, those who would do it harm fall under my jurisdiction as well." He held one of his hands out in front of him, and, to my unease, summoned a keyblade. Wait a minute…

I then noticed that he had summoned the Void Gear keyblade; I would know the design anywhere.

But that would mean…

I gasped as the realization bombarded me like the Japanese on Pearl Harbor. I knew who that lion was now, but I just could not believe that he's still alive. He noticed my amazed expression, and grinned at it.

"Finally figured it out, have we?" Vanitas asked rhetorically.

"How are you… why… what happened…?" That was honestly all I could do at the time; stutter incoherent questions at the black lion that was once the worst person I had ever known.

"Ventus and I are simply polar halves of the same heart. One cannot die while the other lives."

"But why are you… a… a…"

"Lion?" Still suffering from a temporary mental shutdown, I only nodded my head.

"Likely a side effect of regaining a living body. I would need one to keep that keystone safe from the Keyblade Tyrant."

"Keyblade… Tyrant?"

Vanitas sighed dejectedly at my question, his tail drooping slightly to accompany his mood. He then walked over to the keystone, and waved his hand…er, paw… whatever… over the surface of the stone. Almost instantly, the image inside gave way to a green, anthropomorphic hedgehog with these black streaks on his face and quills, holding this keyblade composed entirely of crystal. Finally regaining my composure, I recognized the weapon as something the Master told me about a few days before Terra and I took our Mark of Mastery exams.

"His name is Ashura," Vanitas clarified. "A cruel person who cannot be allowed to completely acquire the powers of these keystones."

"He has it, doesn't he?" I asked the dark half of my friend's heart. "The Crystal Madness?"

"Yup. Possibly the worst case to ever exist. So bad, that his dying hold on sanity is creating a new breed of terrible creatures."

I turned towards Vanitas in disbelief. "New demons?"

The black lion only nodded his head, and waved his hand over the keystone again, causing the image to shift to a mark that looked like an inverted, gothic rendition of the Unversed symbol, with melting chains wrapped around the central heart, positioned so that it retained reflectional symmetry.

"They are known… as Psychopaths." The two of us stared at the Psychopath mark in anticipation. It was about then that I figured out what the mark was supposed to represent; a heart ready to break itself apart.

"Foul creatures that feed on craziness and uncertainty, born of a dying hold on an evil one's mind. They are to Ashura as the Unversed are to me; no matter how many times a Psychopath dies, its craziness returns to Ashura."

I let Vanitas's words sink in… monsters that were almost like Neo-Unversed, but might be a hundred times worse. Wait a minute… why do I trust Vanitas on this? He tried to help Master Xehanort forge the Χ-Blade from Ven's heart and take over Kingdom Hearts.

"Believe me, Master Aqua, I am as against that green freak of nature as you are," he suddenly said, as if he had read my thoughts. I barely registered the fact that he had referred to me by the title I had earned so long ago.

"I need to warn someone of this danger. But… how can I do it?"

"Your Wayfinder."

I turned to the black lion in confusion, and then remembered the magic I placed on the good luck charms I made for myself, Terra, and Ven. An unbreakable connection of hearts, forming a network of close friends. It was worth a shot, I guess.

I took the charm from my pocket, and began to focus my thoughts on its magic. I never tried this type of thing using the Wayfinder before, and it might be possible that I'll end up connecting with someone I've never met, but the purpose is worth the risk.

I eventually found a heart I could connect with, and the charm dragged the two of us to the realm that exists within the subject's heart. I opened my eyes to the dark void, broken only by a lone platform composed of stained glass. I glanced down at the subject's station, examining the elements the person has to his heart.

The foreground of the image showed a series of rolling hills covered in this lush grass, with rock formations that formed a kind of shuttle loop. The figure primarily depicted in the image was a teenage boy with spiky blue hair, a white vest with this badge showing seven brilliant cut gems of varying colors in a circle over his heart. Under that, he wore a blue shirt, with this buzz saw like mark on it, along with black cargo pants, and red sneakers with a white strap running across it, and this gold buckle at the end. In his hand, he held a strange looking keyblade that I have never seen before. The circles that would show the subject's close friends depicted various anthropomorphic animals, and the circles around the edge of the platform showed the same gem that I could see on the boy's badge.

"Hey, who are you? And where am I?" a masculine voice broke the haze of my thoughts, and I raised my head to see the blue-haired boy shown on the platform.

"My name is Aqua, and this place here… is your heart."

"But… if that's the case, then… why are you here?"

I brought out my good luck charm, held it so he would be able to see it.

"I made Wayfinders like this one here for myself and two friends I have. I worked a little magic on them to allow the holder to draw strength from the hearts of those close to them, temporarily borrowing their abilities. I used that magic to bring myself here, and warn you of a great danger ahead."

"You mean Ashura? Because I already know about him, and this body here," he gestured to himself at this "is a constant reminder of my first meeting with him."

"You have my sympathy, but it is not Ashura I need to warn you about. It's the monsters being born from his dwindling sanity. They are called Psychopaths."

"Psychopaths…" He looked thoughtful as he let the name sink in. I then told him everything Vanitas told me, with the boy nodding in understanding every so often.

"Alright. I think I understand the situation. I'll let Master Sora know about these things as soon as possible."

MASTER Sora! He actually acquired a keyblade? I guess fate has a way of crossing everyone's paths, doesn't it?

"Hang on. Before you go, I have something that might aid you." With that, I walked over to him, placed a hand on his brooch, and focused my energy to forming the strong link between friends on it. It began to glow in this soft light, before fading away.

"I placed the same magic on my charm onto this badge. Now, you only need to seek the connection with your friends, and you can borrow their powers for a short time. Oh, I never got your name."

The teenager chuckled softly before he identified himself.

"I'm Sonic! Sonic the Keyblader! And Aqua… thanks for telling me this."

I smiled kindly at him.

"No problem."

I cut the link, and allowed myself to return to the clearing I was in earlier. I turned my gaze to Vanitas, noting that his look projected irritation.

"I relayed the warning. Now, this Keyblade Tyrant has nothing to surprise his foes with."

"Perfect. Now, just to make sure he isn't left completely open to get the next keystone…" I watched him raise a hand in front of him, and summoned this cloud of black mist from his palm. Soon, it solidified into this record with the Unversed Emblem in its center.

"I've always wanted to use this one."

A dark corridor opened close by, and the black lion wasted no time in throwing the record into it, with the portal closing soon after.

"Exactly, what was the abomination you sent after that tyrant?"

Vanitas grinned darkly before giving his answer.

"The Remix Master."

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><p><strong>Well… there you go. Remember what I said in the introductory notes in this chapter; this is during the last few chapters to The Keytus Gene, so I don't want any reviews asking what the heck happened to the last installment. IT'S STILL GOING! This just happens to be going at the same time. Think of this as a sort of Preview for now. Just clink the review button you see down there, and tell me what you think.<strong>


	2. Let's See how You Dance to the Remix

**Here we are with the second chapter to Keystone Chronicles Book 3: Return of the Unversed. We will tell this chapter from Ashura's POV. And for those of you who have read the last chapter to The Keytus Gene, Ashura is right-handed, so he is not hindered in any way with his left forearm chopped off. So, let us begin.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

**Let's See how You Dance to the Remix**

I clutched my bleeding, shortened arm in my available hand, still seething over Naminé's trap. I glared at the record that had effectively cut off my left forearm, and only one question was present in my mind; who in the universe had the nerve to interfere with my plan?

I suddenly saw the record float off the ground, leaving this black mist below it. This strange, gaseous substance eventually solidified, and formed this huge mixing board with the same emblem I saw on the record printed smack dab in the middle of the front face. The same record was placed on either side of the board. I could easily sense some type of battle coming, and to minimize interference, I summoned a gale of wind that forced Riku, Kairi, and the memory witch out of the field of energy. I may be unable to leave this cage, but they obviously can.

Almost as soon as they were out, a pair of clawed, disembodied hands materialized from the mixing board, and began to mess with the controls, playing "The Tumbling", from Kingdom Hearts, Birth by Sleep. Black mist continued to climb away from the hands, forming arms, and eventual, completing this DJ-like monster, with dark blue skin, red eyes that had a shape that made the thing look like it was crying and the same emblem printed on its chest, and both ends of its headphones. (A/N: Behold, the Remix Master Vanitas mentioned in the previous chapter. To complete the effect of this chapter, play "The Tumbling" while reading the battle scenes.)

Almost immediately, the creature started launching these sound wave-like projectiles at me. Quickly unsheathing the crystal Keyblade, I leapt out of the way and ran at it to try and counter. Unfortunately, it avoided the attack by teleporting to a farther part of the cage, mixing board and all.

Whoever sent this abomination obviously knew what he was doing. The music was seriously starting to get on my nerves.

The demonic DJ suddenly picked up on of the records, and threw it at me like a boomerang. Thanks to my perfect reflexes, I was able to dodge it. I threw the keyblade at it in a counterattack, and it bounced of the mixing board, which seemed to cause the DJ pain, and then came flying back at me. I reached my left hand out to grab it, but then a few seconds later I remembered that I didn't HAVE a left hand anymore.

I quickly caught it in my other hand, and got ready to charge at the thing. As if predicting my movements, the strange beast began firing these bolts of sound at me. I dodged most of the projectiles, but one of them scraped my leg, and I felt intense pain climbing up it, even though it was just a sound wave, which I really didn't understand.

Things just kept getting weirder and weirder, didn't they? What kind of monster is this thing?

I heard someone arrive outside the cage, but I could not dwell on that, as the demon Disc Jockey started firing more music bolts at me. It was infuriating. Why is this thing attacking me? Who sent it? What did I do to… okay, maybe I might have warranted this sort of resistance when I started collecting the keystones, but really?

After dodging the bolts again, I hide behind a small rock in order to try and collect my thoughts. As I sat there like a freaking COWARD, I took a moment to consider my options.

Maybe a Psychopath could help defeat this thing? No, the strongest one I have at the moment was the Kooky Warden, and since I'm alone, he won't be much help.

What if Clockspine were… no… if I can't get out, what makes me think he can get in?

Perhaps Xehanort or Ivo could… again; the stupid cage won't let them in here.

I am pretty beat up right now. I could probably use a Dark Heart Theft on it. No, the stupid thing doesn't work on monstrous beings like Heartless or Nobodies. Believe me; I already tried it on Clockspine.

There is still the possibility that I could pull a DHT with someone outside the cage and force them to… she said no one of evil heart could leave the cage. I can't even force my heart out.

Ah, screw it. I'll just continue doing this the old-fashioned way.

Leaping out of my hiding spot, I charged at the DJ with my blade raised above my head, and delivered a barrage of attacks at it so fast that it had no time to react. As the final blow was delivered, I noticed the cage flicker a little, and then fade from existence. Turning my attention away from the monster, which was being devoured by this dark blue flame, I saw Xehanort with his keyblade pierced through Naminé's chest, her essence returning to Kairi. Behind them, I could see Riku, Sora, Virxels, Sonic, Ash, Alan, and that Skyhart boy.

"A little late, aren't we, Sora?" I asked the Keyblade Master just to tick him off.

"Sorry, we had to deal with your insane pets," Sonic threw in his two-cent worth.

"Ah, well, I was delayed enough by the sorrowful Disc Jockey, so, I should be making my leave to the next local…" I was taunting them.

"_Not going to happen, buster!"_ the former trainer mentally screamed at me. It was right about then that I noticed that he had moved on to the next stage.

Perfect. All he has to do now is pass the Mark of Mastery exam and he'll be at full power.

"It already has, my dear boy…" before any of them, not even Sonic, could react, I called dark corridors for Ivo and Xehanort to escape through before I summoned one behind myself, and calmly walked through the portal, confident that nothing could ruin my raid of the Realm of Darkness.

However, had I been more observant, I would have noticed Kairi charging headlong into the corridor after me, with Sonic just behind her. I would also have seen Sora attempt to follow his love and apprentice, but failed as the corridor closed before he could enter.

I eagerly awaited my arrival to the epicenter of all darkness, believing nothing, and no one, would be there to stand in my way.

Except maybe that Aqua girl Xehanort mentioned.

Again, I was wrong.

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><p><strong>Your always wrong, Ashura. Well, there is chapter two of Keystone Chronicles, Book Three. Now, submit your reviews, please.<strong>


	3. Into the Darkness

**Welcome to chapter three of Keystone Chronicles Book 3: Return of the Unversed. Before we start, I have some announcements to make. First, I have created a poll for the future battles that will occur later in the series. I request you vote on it. Lastly, this chapter will be told from Sonic's POV. Well… let's get this show on the road!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

**Into the Darkness**

What was Kairi thinking? As Ahsura was making his leave, having acquired keystone #2, she went and charged after him, and I was just able to leap into the dark corridor after her before it closed. The only reason I made it was because I was so fast.

As she and I were chasing after Ashura down the dark void, I was thinking about a few things. Like what the heck was that DJ thing that attacked Ashura back there? It was like a negative to his Psychopaths.

Eventually, Kairi and I reached the end of the corridor, and we exited to this dank violet stone under a dark sky. I felt bad vibes from every corner of the place.

"What is this place?" I asked no one in particular.

"The Realm of Darkness…" Kairi answered. "The negative reflection of the realm of Light."

I then remembered something I found while I was skimming through the Master's Report during Ashura's attack on Angel Island.

"One of the keystones is here. Kairi, can you track Ashura down?"

"No… there's far too much darkness here. I can't weed out a single source."

Perfect. We're stuck in this negative world with no way to pinpoint Ashura's location. Is there any way to…

In reflex, I let my hand drift to my brooch. I felt Aqua's magic running its course within. I could probably use one of my friend's abilities to try and pinpoint Ashura…

Except I don't know anyone who has that power.

"Well… maybe we should start walking," I finally breathed out.

With that, Kairi and I started slowly trudging our way through this dark and dreary place. It was mainly just a dank, stone path extending endlessly through a dark abyss.

There was Pureblood Heartless attacking every now and then, but otherwise, nothing. Kairi seemed to be holding up fine, but that's probably because she's a Princess of Heart. Me… I had to activate my armor after a half hour as a precaution.

It felt like we were walking for weeks, fighting the Heartless every so often. Although, as Kairi and I progressed deeper into the dark void, I noticed another category of enemies mixed in there every now and then. The same category that thing that chopped of Ashura's left forearm fell into. I could tell because they had that same mark and emotion-like eyes that creepy DJ had. I didn't know what these things were called at the time, but I could note that I often noticed small groups of these things attacking groups of Heartless… just as frequently as they would work alongside them to battle me and Kairi.

Which of us are these things siding with?

Eventually, I heard something echo through the dark abyss. Is that… music?

Kairi and I followed the sound to this thin strip where we could see this tiny isle within visible distance from us. On it, we could easily see Ashura, with what was lost of his left arm replaced with this dark energy that seemed solid and took the form of his forearm ending in this clawed hand (A/N: think Mephiles' crystal form, but slightly more unstructured, and only at the left arm), dancing and singing along to Wynter Gordon's "Til Death". I cringed when I noted that he was doing so in this sexual manner. I'm going to hazard a guess that he is doing this because of that "perform-embarrassing-antics-when-you-think-no-one-is-looking" symptom of the Crystal Madness.

_Might as well burn the club down tonight_

_Kill me with the beat 'til Daylight_

_Let it get hot, I'mma stay inside_

_Til Death do we party_

_With the music I die_

I could not believe what I was looking at. He failed to notice his audience, so Kairi and I took the opportunity to hastily dance our way off, which by the way, is a pain when you're wearing a ten pound suit of armor.

Quickly forgetting we saw Ashura doing that, we continued walking down the barren path. It was frightening to think of spending an eternity here.

The sounds of a battle shook me out of my thoughts, and I noticed we were approaching this open plain… well, as close to an open plain as this place can get, anyway.

On that field, I was able to see two people locked in combat, both using keyblades as their weapons. One of the combatants was this black, anthropomorphic lion wearing a red open jacket with the same mark those weird… things had on them printed on the back, and a smaller rendition on the left side of the chest, over where the heart would be, baggy yellow jeans, and leather boots. The other fighter was…

AQUA!

What is she doing here? Kairi seemed to recognize her as well, judging from her expression. Had the two of them met in the past?

I watched Aqua knock the lion down off his feet, as the latter dropped his keyblade from the impact. Despite the distance, I could easily make out the conversation they were having immediately afterward.

"You've improved since we last met," The lion stated.

"I could say the same for you, Vanitas."

The lion, apparently named Vanitas, quickly leapt back to his feet. After doing so, he knelt down, and picked up his keyblade, which I could now see was designed like it belonged in machinery.

But, his name… Vanitas… that's Latin for "Emptiness" much like how "Aqua" translates to "Water".

To further my confusion… how do Aqua and Vanitas know each other?

I released a soft grunt from my closed lips. I saw Vanitas's ears twitch in that moment.

He heard me.

Something tells me he isn't exactly a very sociable person.

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><p><strong>And that is how the song plays. Speaking of songs, anyone like the one referenced here? Now, this time, you are REQUIRED to submit your reviews, or I shall delete every story I have ever posted on this site!<strong>

**Okay, no I won't, but I still want reviews!**


	4. Halves

**Here we are, with chapter number FOUR of Keystone Chronicles Book 3! This chapter will be told from Vanitas's POV. And I apologize if he seems a little OOC in my stories; do you have any idea how hard it is to have someone like him seem good while retaining some of his more defining traits?**

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><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

**Halves**

It seems some people have no sense of privacy. Although the grunt was barely a whisper, my new, sensitive, feline ears were able to pick it up easily. Using the "afterimage-teleport" trick Xehanort taught me years ago, I immediately moved behind the eavesdroppers. One of them had keyblade armor on, so I could not make out any features. The other, however, was this red-haired girl roughly my age.

Hmm. She looks similar to Aqua.

"You know, it's rude to spy on others," I bluntly stated while I was still behind them.

The sudden resonation of my voice caught both of them by surprise, leading them to slowly turn towards me after they watched the afterimage fade away. After venting my irritation with them as an Unversed, I grabbed both of them by the wrist, and dragged them over to where Aqua was still standing, her master's keyblade held at the ready. Although it took her a few seconds, she quickly seemed to recognize the girl.

"Kairi, is that you?"

"Aqua…"

The girl, Kairi, suddenly remembered something, and used her free hand to reach behind her back, and remove a pair of items from her pocket.

"These are yours, aren't they?"

Aqua stared at the baubles in disbelief, although I really couldn't blame her. What Kairi was giving to her was…

"My armor… My keyblade… how did you…"

"I made a quick stop by Radiant Garden before helping Sora against Ashura." Kairi smiled pleasantly at Aqua, holding the female master's weapon and armor over to her. Aqua accepted the items gratefully.

I released my grip on Kairi, but tightened it on the armored boy. I felt him cringe under my grasp, and I mentally grinned in satisfaction. He's a strong willed one. Unwilling to show weakness, free as the wind, not caring what others think, lives life his way, that's how one would describe this boy. Now, if only I could see his face.

I do NOT need someone mimicking how I always had my face hidden behind that mask.

"Uh… Vanitas, was it? Your grip is getting kinda tight…" the armored boy finally spoke. Aqua seemed to instantly recognize his voice, so I loosened my grip on his wrist, allowing him to break free.

Like I give a damn about him.

Aqua studied the armored teen intensively, as if trying to pry out some defining clues from the steel plates.

"Hey, Aqua. Nice to meet you properly, after your warning about the Psychopaths."

So, THIS is the guy Aqua told about the Psychopaths. He finally removed his helmet, revealing his face. The most prominent features I could easily detect were his grassy green eyes, and cobalt hair.

"Sonic…" Aqua said to the armored boy. "What are you…?"

"Ashura is here," The boy, Sonic, responded to her unfinished question.

"What?"

"The third keystone is here, I know that. Somehow, Riku and Kairi's ambush was mostly avoided, and that depressed Disc Jockey only delayed him a little."

Figures. The Remix Master wasn't the strongest Unversed I have available to me; the Trinity Armor is the strongest. It might have simply been a poor decision to use one of the weaker "commanders" to handle that Keyblade Tyrant. Ah, well. No use crying over spilled milk.

When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade, as the saying goes.

"Alright, where is he?" I inquired of him.

"Well… Kairi and I last saw him a ways back, making a fool of himself thanks to his sense of privacy."

The last part, I could have lasted without hearing.

Without wasting another minute, I generated literal storms of Unversed, like the ones I made in the Keyblade Graveyard, and sent them loose on the platform I could sense the green hedgehog's presence on.

I think I can leave it to them for now. It won't be enough to finish him, but it can delay him for as long as possible.

With that done, my thoughts drifted to Sonic, the blue-haired boy before me.

Everything I said about him earlier… he's just like Ventus. Cheerful, outgoing, and easy to befriend. Subconsciously, I traced the scar on my chest with my claw, remembering that final battle with him. The desperation to complete our union… to complete the Χ-Blade… to complete my only chance at salvation.

I got overconfident. Forcing myself onto Ventus as a D-Link… it did nothing to deter his chances, and he ultimately destroyed me using my own finisher… he did, in fact, get the Last Word in.

When I began losing the Χ-Blade… that was the first time I truly knew fear. The first time I allowed my cold demeanor to fade away to reveal the scared, nervous wreck bred from Xehanort's unforgiving training.

I thought the Χ-Blade was the only chance I had to escape… to become more than what Xehanort created me for.

But as I was hanging in the balance between life and death… drifting towards this eventual duty… I caught a glimpse of Ventus's memories. I saw the good times he had with his friends… his value to them… their value to him… and those two… Lea and Isa… from Ventus's meeting with them… I could see the strength friendship had. Although I had scoffed at this when I battled Aqua in Neverland… the scene gave me second thoughts…

Maybe… I was wrong. There was another way…

But what that way is… I still have no idea.

"Vanitas?"

Sonic's voice suddenly broke through the haze my thoughts formed, bringing me back to earth.

"It's nothing…"

With that, I started to walk away from the scene, my tail hanging limp and depressed behind me. I needed some time alone with my thoughts.

My heart is one of pure darkness. I'm supposed to be an uncaring, cold-blooded killer.

So what is this odd feeling I have about my actions towards Ventus?

Is this… guilt?

I've been having these feelings since I was restored to life. I don't know why I feel these things… why I have these feeling I don't understand.

Ashura… I can't stand him. I was restored in order to protect the keystone of darkness. I can't let him get his hands on it.

But… No. I can't question my abilities. I have to stay confident. The minute you question your skills, that's when you die.

"Hello, dear black lion."

I'll admit, the voice caught by surprise, but I almost instantly regained my composure, and turned to face the one who spoke. The speaker was this obese guy in a red-tailed jacket, and block goggles, with this enormous red mustache.

"I am Doctor Ivo Robotnik. You may know me as the infamous Dr. Eggman," I snickered at that name, "although one can guess that this is not the case for you." The good doctor looked me over before he spoke again.

"I can easily see you are the guardian of the keystone hidden in this barren wasteland…" we both watched a tumbleweed drift through the space between us. "… but I will do the liberty of taking you off Ashura's hands, and then move on to that Agua girl Xehanort mentioned."

"You would do well not to underestimate me," I warned the doctor. "… and for the record, her name is Aqua, with a 'Q'."

"What do I care what her name is? She's likely nothing more than some pretty face who can't defend herself without a crowd of men present… as Ashura would likely respond to that statement."

"You have no idea how lucky you are that Aqua wasn't around to hear that."

Robotnik gave a deadpan expressdion at that sentence. He was about to summon his army before something occurred to him.

"Alright, I have a policy of not fighting nameless foes. Tell me, who are you?"

"Vanitas."

After I identified myself, Robotnik seemed about to remember it from something my old Master told him about. I could easily hear him muttering to himself.

"Vanitas… Vanitas… that sounds familiar somehow… now, where was it again?… You're not related to Sonic… you're not related to me…"

Hrrrmmm… Well… I'm sure it'll hit him sooner or later.

"You're not related to Big…"

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><p><strong>Five hours later…<strong>

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><p>"You're not an enemy I had before I met Sonic… You weren't there when I made that interstellar amusement park… Oh, now I remember. Xehanort mentioned that name once."<p>

Finally.

"Now, what was it that he said about you again?" I promptly face faulted in response to the doctor's miserable memory.

"OH, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! I WAS XEHANORT'S FREAKING APPRENTICE! IT'S NOT THAT HARD!"

"Oh, right. I thought Xehanort said you were killed by that Vain-bus kid."

"HIS NAME IS VENTUS, IDIOT! V-E-N-T-U-S!"

"I also thought he said you were human."

I didn't bother responding to that. I was acting out of character enough as it was.

"One more thing… I thought that in Latin, the letter 'V' was said as a 'W'. Shouldn't your name be pronounced…?"

"Finish that sentence, and I'll kill you."

Robotnik was not daunted by my threat at all.

"Fine. We've been wasting enough time with this conversation anyway. Let's get the battle started!"

He pressed this huge button on his hovercraft's dashboard, and almost instantly, a vast amount of robots rushed to his side, ready for battle.

I warned him not to underestimate me, didn't I?

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><p><strong>And that is how the story goes. Now, about the tidbit about the Trinity Armor being the strongest Unversed… that's by my calculations, anyway. You don't fight any Unversed bosses after it (outside of the Metamorphosis in Ven's story), and the battle with it would probably have been impossibly hard if any of the protagonists had battled the thing alone. So, it would stand to reason that it is Vanitas's strongest commander, wouldn't it? Now then, to business! Submit any reviews you have, or everything I have ever written will be subject to… ah, forget it. Nobody ever falls for that trick. Just review.<strong>


	5. The Lingering Will

**Faithful readers, I present to you Chapter 5 of Keystone Chronicles Book 3: Return of the Unversed. Here, we will move to an off-set location and see what other people are doing. This chapter will be told from Riku's POV. Well… that's all I have to say.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

**The Lingering Will**

Why did I come here instead of open a way to the realm of darkness to find Kairi and Sonic? This place… seemed to call out to me for some reason.

Ash, Shadow, Alan, and Virxels came with me at Sora's request, and the five of us had then set off for that world that I felt I had to head towards…

…The Keyblade Graveyard.

The five of us stood there, staring at the endless expanse of dead keyblades, tarnished by the desert winds, abused by time…

All of us had our keyblades in our hands… gripping them as if fearing they would end up joining these lifeless ones. Shadow's keyblade seemed extremely complex, compared to some of the keyblades I've seen. The gaurds were formed from bat wings, with this metallic semicircle sprouting a short opening at the point where they meet the shaft. Underneath that circle was a capital Omega. A green laser was being shot from the opening, and formed the shaft of the blade. The blade ended at this black chunk of rock, the debris from the blast acting as the teeth. Strangely, the debris was more coordinated, and shaped the teeth into the letters "M.R." The chain was made from the same gold rings I saw on Sonic's keyblade, but the token was of this odd red symbol. (A/N: to clarify, it's the emblem of the Black Arms)

Shadow said it was called Tragic Origins.

"All these keys…" I heard Alan mutter under his breath.

"_What happened here?"_ Ash asked telepathically.

"This… was supposedly the site of a fierce Keyblade war…" Virxels answered.

"… A war… for the power of Kingdom Hearts…" I finished.

Ash and Alan continued to stare into the endless expanse of dead keys, now with a sense of foreboding.

Something called me here. I have to know what.

We started walking into the expanse, slowly approaching this incredibly high plateau in the middle. This plateau was a landmark to the most recent conflict that had taken place on this world; the battle between the original Master Xehanort, and the Three Originals.

On top of that plateau… he still waits for his form to be restored…

The one I inherited the Keyblade from…

"Terra…"

Shadow and Virxels shot a glance at me after I muttered that name. They would have inquired about my thoughts, but doing so obviously wasn't at the top of their priority list. Ash unfolded his wings, and began flying to the peak of the rock plateau, with the rest of us climbing behind him, easily keeping pace. In no time, we were all at the peak, and waiting there for us was…

"About time you got here, Riku," Master Xehanort growled.

"Xehanort…"

"You again?"

Xehanort chuckled evilly at the comments Ash and I made in response to his presence. I will never forgive him for anything he-or his Heartless and Nobody-did. I could easily figure out why he's here.

He wants to challenge me to battle.

"_**XEHANORT!"**_

The dark master was undisturbed by the sudden outcry, and simply raised his keyblade to block an attack from this figure clad in red, gold, and brown armor, wielding this earth-themed keyblade. I knew that the armor was empty, controlled by the separated essence of the keyblade wielder whose body Xehanort had cruelly stolen.

I saw the dark master smirk at the sentiment's attack, clearly remembering the time he had last seen him.

"Hello again, Terra," He drawled out with clear malice. "Come to see your chosen successor's final moments?"

"_**You will pay for your crimes, Xehanort!"**_

"I'm sure I will."

"Hey, I'm in this as well. You've caused me more problems than I'm ever going to live down. I will fight to the death alongside Terra. Everything I do… I do for my friends!"

Moving next to Terra's somewhat vacant armor, both of us got into our respective battle stances, as Xehanort slipped into his. As the battle was about to begin, I saw Ash's eyes glaze over for a second, likely him having another vision. The opening of a battle is NEVER a good time to pause and ask him what he saw, so I ended up ignoring it for the most part. It wasn't until AFTER the events of his vision came to pass that I learned what he had seen; the black lion he saw in his first vision sinisterly walking up to Xehanort, and then summoning a keyblade, then whispering something in his ear.

For that moment, whatever the Keyroku had seen, it would have to wait. (A/N: there's a double meaning to that last part. Also, did anyone notice the "Last Word" joke in the last chapter?)

This battle would be one for the history books.

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><p><strong>Heart of PureSilver, we are a lot alike, you and I. We are both fans of Kingdom Hearts and Sonic the Hedgehog, we both love Silver, and neither of us can write a battle scene for the life of us! I had to end the chapter here for that reason. Maybe we should look for fics with prominent battle scenes, and draw inspiration from those. At any rate, you guys need to review.<strong>


	6. Leveling Out the Teams

**Here is Chapter 6 of Return of the Unversed! This time around, the story will be told from Eggman's POV. That's all I have to say. Oh, one more thing, in addition to everything listed in the first chapter, I don't own Jak and Daxter or The Twilight Zone. I think I messed up the show's intro anyway. Let's go.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

**Leveling Out the Teams**

Yup. Vanitas is defiantly as skilled as Xehanort made him out to be. He managed to fight off all of the robots I was sending at him without breaking a sweat. Shame that the two of us have to be enemies.

No matter. Ashura should have dealt with those monster twisters by now, and should be heading to the Keystone right now. I could see the plain with that stone from where I was, and could make out Ashura walking over to it. However, I could also see Sonic, that redhead who was with that white-haired boy, and this blue haired woman chasing after him.

The blue haired woman must be that Aqua person.

Ashura obviously heard their footsteps, as I could see him slowly turn to face his pursuers.

"Ah, you must be Aqua," I could tell Ashura was saying this through a precise expertise in the art of lip-reading.

"Yes. You're Ashura, right?" Aqua was speaking here.

"Uh-huh."

"I won't let you get the Keystone. None of us will."

"Hmmph. Fine. Show me your heart's power." (A/N: Yes, Ashura will say that before every battle he takes part in. It's his "go-to-battle" phrase. Anyway, for the following scenes, play any Kingdom Hearts boss music you wish, although "Unforgettable" and "Fight and Away" may work best.)

With Ashura's "start-the-fireworks-and-watch-until-it-blinds-you-and-you-die" phrase, the two leaped at each other, Ashura's dark forearm shimmering evilly in the nonexistent light. Aqua was gracefully dodging everything Ashura threw at her, and effortlessly countering his attacks with swipes of her keyblade, or powerful magic. At other points, she would summon a barrier to protect herself, and then shatter it, attacking Ashura with the shards. She would even surge forward after Ashura somehow manages to get lucky and send her flying back.

To put it bluntly, the battle was hopelessly one-sided, and Mr. Sexist was losing to a woman.

I was so distracted by Ashura's pitiful and embarrassing battle that I failed to notice Vanitas slip away from me, and rush over to watch Ashura get creamed.

He would probably have attempted a Dark Heart Theft at this point… but she would have dodged it anyway. Besides, it doesn't work on someone of the opposite gender… and if it hits you in the back, it doesn't work the way it's supposed to. It has to hit in the chest, or something bad happens.

Exactly what that is, I have no clue.

"THERE IS NO WAY ON EARTH I'M GOING TO LET A HELPLESS, VAIN, SHALLOW, STUPID, IDIOTIC GIRL BEAT ME!" Ashura screamed. I could see numerous veins budging on Aqua's forehead.

"What did you just say?" she asked dangerously. Ashura is going to get it now. Even Sonic and Vanitas were glaring daggers at him. Heck, I was glaring at him. He really isn't in a position to be insulting women, now he just sealed his death.

Sure enough, Aqua was prepared to let Ashura taste her ultimate spell; the Lightbloom. Immidiately, she started spinning in a crouched position, bolts of light flying from Eraqus's keyblade and at Ashura. After a few seconds, Aqua raised so that she's standing and leaning backwards while maintaining her rotational momentum, then rotating with her leg behind her head, and leading to the final burst.

Sadly, I noticed Ashura had left a decoy to take the attack, while he took the keystone. He can be such a coward sometimes. This marks him as a hypocrite, seeing as how he displays as much tolerance for that trait as Sora. And anyone who's played "Kingdom Hearts II" should know that he shows NO tolerance for selfishness or cowardice.

I watched Ashura soak up the dark powers of the keystone before him as Aqua, Vanitas, Sonic, and that red-head realized what had happened. I moved my craft closer to Ashura, and watched the handle of the Crystal Keyblade take on this dark, shadowy essence. At the same time, the dark energy that was replacing the green hedgehog's left forearm solidified, and took on the same crystalline form Knuckles body was forced to become.

Although, the shape seemed somehow familiar to me.

Now, where have I seen it before? I think it was when I… no, I've never been there. Have I? Why do I remember Sonic being cruelly murdered by this mouth less, crystal hedgehog that looks like Shadow?

That never happened, Ivo! Get a hold of yourself!

"Our work here is done, Ivo," Ashura stated to me, while opening a dark corridor. "It's time we met up with Master Xehanort."

I followed Ashura into the corridor, but I could see the others chasing after us. I collapsed the platform shortly before Vanitas could enter. He was about to fall to his death, but Sonic grabbed his hand, and pulled him into the corridor.

I wasn't surprised. He would have done the same for anyone else, including me. That blue speedster is never one to hold a grudge. Of course, he has no reason to hold one against that black lion.

As I exited the corridor, Aqua and her comarades following behind, I saw Xehanort locked in combat with that white-haired kid and someone in a suit of Keyblade armor. Ash, Alan, Shadow, and Virxels were watching everything from the sidelines, and I could see Sora arriving just then.

"Xehanort, forget the dark Masters. I have received the next keystone."

Xehanort didn't seem to hear Ashura, but he succeeded in connecting a hard blow to the armored guy, sending him back some.

"Terra!" Aqua cried out in worry at seeing the attack. I watched her run to the armored man's side.

"_**Aqua…I'm sorry…for everything I've done…"**_

"Terra… you don't need to explain yourself. You have no reason to beat yourself up over your fall to darkness. The three of us… can't be torn apart."

At the last part of Aqua's touching words, she pulled out this charm in the shape of a star. The armored guy got out a similar charm, but with a different color.

"How touching," Xehanort sneered at the two. "It's time I finished both of you off."

"Not happening, Xehanort," Vanitas said to his former teacher. Xehanort turned towards the black lion, and as I suspected, failed to recognize him.

Vanitas slowly walked towards the evil master, summoning his keyblade as he walked. Upon reaching Xehanort, he leaned forward and whispered something in his ear. Again, through lip reading, I discerned what was said. Two simple words that instantly told me what would happen in the seconds that followed;

"Nothing personal."

Immediately, Vanitas plunged his keyblade through Xehanort's chest, piercing his heart as he coughed up a small amount of blood. Slowly, the evil keyblade master slid down the Void Gear, and collapsed on the ground, dead. The remains of his body glowed with this ethereal light, signifying Terra getting his body back, but Ashura dragged me into a dark corridor, preventing both of us from viewing the miracle.

The two of us stood there in the middle of the corridor, with only the strength of our hearts preventing us from becoming corrupted.

"You disappoint me, Ivo. I expected you to eliminate that lion, and now look where we are! Our team is down one, while Sora's is up three!"

"Hey, you're the one who thought he was a pushover! Did you forget everything Xehanort said about him?"

Ashura only glared at me, his seething rage lessening as an idea came to him.

"I think you need to take a more direct role in our crusade, Ivo."

That worried me.

"And I know just the thing to assure it."

With that word, he walked over to a door somewhere in the corridor, as I followed behind him. As he opened it, creepy sci-fi music suddenly started playing from nowhere. Through the doorway, I could see an endless expanse of stars, along with weird things floating along.

"_The place you are about to enter, is another realm. A dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You are about to enter a place where the extraordinary and impossible are everyday occurrences. You are about to enter-"_

Ashura abruptly slammed the door shut, cutting off the intro.

"Sorry, Ivo. Wrong door."

I heaved a relieved sigh that I wasn't being banished to the Twilight Zone. He then dragged me over to a door right next to it, opening it to reveal this spooky, industrial room filled with these large vats. The two of us walked out of the dark corridor, and over to the closest vat. Looking down into it, I saw it was filled with this dark, oozy substance, with this similar red stuff mixed in there.

"Uh, what is that stuff?" I asked Ashura.

"That, my dear Ivo, is a mixture of Dark and Red Eco."

"Eco?"

Ashura, grinned evilly before he elaborated.

"Eco is the lifeblood of this world. Centuries ago, it was harvested by a group of beings that the people of this world called the Precursors. But they vanished a long time ago, and no one knows exactly who they were. Well, all except for this one boy, but that's a story for later."

I looked back into the vat of Eco, suddenly disturbed by it.

"There are six different types of Eco in this world. Red Eco increases a person's strength, and Dark Eco has mutagenic properties," Ashura continued his explanation. The pieces suddenly started to fit together in my head, and I was about to start backing away from the vat, but Ashura suddenly pushed me in.

"Well, in you go."

I fell into the pool of Eco, and upon entering the substance, my body felt as if it was being crushed under a steam roller covered with syringes. I was forcefully ejected from the stuff a few seconds later, landing hard on my stomach, which felt as if it had lost some cargo in the Eco.

"Dear Chaos, that hurt." I turned sharply towards Ashura, my face screaming anger.

"What the heck was that for you sneaky little…?" It was right about then that I suddenly noticed that I had shrunk to the same height as Ashura. I took a quick look at my hand to only see a gloved paw, and looked over the rest of my body to see this buff chest with a six-pack, which my jacket kept hidden, a weasel-like tail, otter fur, and small ears on the top of my head.

That Eco stuff turned me into this anthropomorphic otter-weasel thing. I could not believe Ashura did this to me. In response to my discovery, I screamed so loudly I was certain Sonic and his friends could hear me from the Keyblade Graveyard.

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><p><strong>Hope you liked that part. Anyway, please review the chapter.<strong>


	7. Prelude to Oblivion

**And now, the seventh and sadly final chapter to Keystone Chronicles Book 3: Return of the Unversed. I hate writer's block. That is the reason I always have to cut the installments of this series short. I promise I will try everything in my power to make the later installments longer than 7 or 8 chapters. But you will have to contribute with some ideas. Anyway, this story will be told from Ash's POV. And in case you're wondering, he and Alan (his Pikachu) will be the only Pokémon characters who will be featured from this point onwards. Gotta keep the central cast at a manageable size, you know? Well, let's get started.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

**Prelude to Oblivion**

Jeez, I had to wonder what the heck Ashura was doing to Dr. Eggman. The rest of us could hear him screaming from whatever world he's in. Well, let's go over the results; Ashura gained his third keystone, but lost Xehanort, while we have Aqua, Vanitas, and a newly restored Terra joining our team.

Things seem fairly even if you think about it.

Vanitas was just standing at the edge of the plateau, looking over the edge at the ground below. Sonic eventually approached him, noticing a distant look in the lion's eyes.

"Hey," He greeted.

"Why did you save me back there?" I heard Vanitas ask him. "I'm pure darkness. An abomination whose existence is as undeserved as a Nobody's. So why would you waste energy to save my life?"

"No special reason."

Vanitas raised an eyebrow at Sonic's response, and I could see his tail flick around in a mixture of confusion and doubt.

With Terra and Aqua, I could see them staring at each other in this tense fashion.

"Aqua, I… it's my fault all of this happened. Ven's lost heart, your time in the realm of darkness, everything Sora, Riku, and Kairi went through… it was all because of me. I gave in to the darkness, and allowed Xehanort to claim my body. I was a fool."

"No, the fault is mine as much as it is yours." Terra looked up at Aqua in amazement.

"I'm the one who failed to expunge Xehanort from your body that day in Radiant Garden. I'm the one who wasn't around to help Kairi learn how to use the keyblade she accidentally inherited from me. You me and Ven are each responsible for everything that's happened during the past eleven years."

Terra only looked at his female friend, allowing her words to sink in.

"Okay, if we're all done with the emotional reunion, we have a universe to save," I finally cut in.

"Ashura just acquired his third keystone, and we don't know where to look for the next one because the Master's Report has no information regarding the remaining keystones," Virxels added on to my interruption. He was right; for reasons I can only assume, the Original Master did not detail the whereabouts of the remaining ten keystones.

"If only we had something to go on…" I could hear Sonic mutter. As if on cue, I felt my precognition kicking in, waiting to show me something of significance that will occur in the near future.

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><p>In the vision, I saw Ashura in front of the same castle I saw in the dream I had that same night I changed. Standing behind him was Clockspine, and this anthropomorphic otter-weasel hybrid with a long red mustache, dark glasses, and a red tailed jacket, hiding this well-toned chest that gave me the impression that he had considerable strength.<p>

"Are you sure this is the right world?" the otter-weasel thing asked Ashura. "It doesn't match up with Xehanort's description."

"I'm positive, Ivo," Ashura answered. "I'm well aware of the trick that was developed by this world's early inhabitants."

With that said, he calmly walked over to the castle's doors, and pushed them open, allowing himself, Clockspine, and the rodent that I now realized was Dr. Eggman to enter. The trio stood around in the same white entrance hall I remember from that dream, looking up at the same doorway.

"Somewhere in this castle… there should be a keystone, repositioned by the world's change in layout."

"Except the only person who would know exactly where it is, we left behind with her allies."

Ashura smirked insanely at Eggman's warning.

"All the more reason to have a little fun with this place."

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><p>The vision ended there, so I could easily guess that castle was where we should go. I informed the others of what I saw, noting a look of apprehension on Aqua's face. Did she recognize the fortress I described?<p>

"That's Castle Oblivion…" I could hear her mutter.

"Castle… Oblivion?" That was Shadow speaking.

"The next keystone must be there. Okay, Terra, Sora, Sonic, Vanitas and I will head over to the castle right away. The rest of you stay at Disney Castle and protect the residents," Aqua instructed the rest of us. I eagerly followed her instructions, and flew off towards the world with Alan, Shadow, Kairi, Riku, and Virxels following behind me on their Keyblade Gliders; Riku and Shadow rode bike types, and Kairi's was this shooter-and-platform device.

"Castle Oblivion…" I could hear Riku whisper. "That name brings back memories…"

"You've been there before?" I asked.

"That's a story for, Ash."

Oh, really? I guess it's really not important. What IS important is that all of us reach Disney Castle.

But, what exactly is Castle Oblivion?

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><p><strong>There. And that is the end of Book 3. Don't worry, Book 4 will be up soon. And to make sure you're pumped, I have three words for you;<strong>

**Vanitas.**

**Love.**

**Interest.**

**Hope to see you all there!**


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